NEWBERG, Ore. -- The George Fox football team made sure to cement their Senior Night with fireworks, as the Fox came alive in the third to run away from Lewis & Clark, 41-20, on Saturday night at Stoffer Family Stadium.
How It Happened
After the Bruins halted the Pios offense on their first drive, the Fox offense quickly drove down the field. Three of the Bruins' first five plays went for 10 or more yards, including a 51-yard bomb from
Haiden Schaan to Dillon Dobbins that saw Dobbins rip the ball away from a Pioneer defender. Fox punctuated their opening drive with a 1-yard rush from
Chad Bletko — the third consecutive game with a touchdown for the senior tight end.
The Fox defense once again stopped the Pios' offense, forcing the high-flying Lewis & Clark offense to punt a second time. Then,
Leon Johnson III announced himself. The senior caught the ball on a short out-route, before slamming a Pioneer defender to the ground with a thunderous stiff arm. Johnson III weaved through the defense to complete his SportsCenter-worthy 63-yard touchdown in front of a roaring crowd.
While the Bruin highlights energized the crowd and the team, the second belonged to the Pioneers; Lewis & Clark controlled the quarter, running 22 plays to the Bruins' 12. Two Schaan turnovers — one interception and one sack-fumble — kept the Bruins off the scoreboard in the period, while the Pioneers found the endzone on an 8-yard pass from Cruz Montana to Devon Guest. At the half, the Bruins led, 13-7.
The Bruins began the second half pinned in their own territory. A holding penalty had Fox situated at the 10-yard line. Then, they made history. Schaan rolled back and found
William Moffitt, who raced through the Pio defense for a 90-yard touchdown, the longest play from scrimmage in program history.Â
As if that play wasn't enough,
Kiegan Schaan made sure to follow his brother up. The younger Schaan scooped up a loose fumble on the very next play from scrimmage and raced into the end zone for a 15-yard score. The Bruins kept things going with another
Leon Johnson III touchdown, this time on a reverse. The senior split through the defense for a 24-yard score to finish off the Bruins' 21-point, 203-yard quarter as Fox led 34-13 at the end of the period.
The final fireworks for Johnson III and the Bruins came on the opening play of the fourth quarter. Schaan found his star wideout for his third overall score of the day to extend the lead to 41-13. From there, several backups and seniors entered the fray, continuing to make an impact.
Makoa Sablan earned a cheer from the bench when he recorded a tackle and a sack, and while Fox let up one additional touchdown, the Bruins coasted to a 41-20 win on Senior night.
Top Performers
Schaan finished the day 12 for 16 for 329 yards and two touchdowns. Johnson III and Moffitt both recorded 102 receiving yards, with Johnson needing only three and Moffitt needing two. Meanwhile,
Taylor Saben led the Bruins with 15 carries for 80 yards — on the ground Saben, Johnson III, and
Ethan Bullock all had carries of 20-plus.
Defensively,
Jaron Marks,
Jacob Erickson, and Sablan all totaled a sack, while
Kross Knoll,
Justin Montijo, and
Nash Wylie all led the team with 10 tackles. Montijo finished the game with three pass breakups, while
Chris McCoy had two.
Kiegan Schaan finished the day with a fumble recovery and a touchdown.
Coach's Thoughts
"It was a big evening, and a big game as far as being senior night," Bruin head coach
Chris Casey said, " We wanted to play well as a team, to play for the seniors, and to have seniors play well. All of that happened tonight. In the first half we played well overall, but we were not on the field much on offense. In the second half, we really ran the ball well which set up everything else, and It became a more consistent overall effort. It was a total team victory on Senior Night.
What It Means
The Bruins improve to 7-2 on the year with a 4-2 Northwest Conference mark, while the Pioneers drop to 4-4 with a 2-4 NWC record.
What Happens Next
The Bruins will conclude their season with a trip to Spokane to take on the Whitworth Pirates. The game is scheduled to kick off at 12:30 p.m.
